Macron and Starmer promise closer French-British connections

Following a meeting with Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Paris on Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron promised to strengthen collaboration with Britain in the areas of energy, security, immigration, and defense.

According to an official from the British government, Starmer and Macron “agreed on the importance of further strengthening and broadening the close relationship between the UK and France in the coming months” and that they should collaborate more closely to cut off migrant smuggling routes and improve intelligence sharing.

Before traveling to Germany to meet with Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Starmer committed to work on a deal that would address everything from trade to defense. He arrived in Paris on Wednesday and attended the opening ceremony of the Paralympics.

As part of his campaign promise to strengthen Britain’s ties with its European allies following years of tension over Brexit and to accelerate economic growth, he is visiting Germany and France, two of the EU’s most powerful nations.

Reiterating their demand for an early ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, Macron and Starmer both spoke about the need to defuse the current Middle East crisis.

The necessity of continuing to back Ukraine against Russia’s invasion was also acknowledged by them as a means of preserving both Kyiv’s defenses and the security of the European continent at large.

Prior to their phone conversation on August 9, the two presidents had already met during the European Political Community and NATO summits in July at Blenheim Palace in England.